What is Love?
by kawaiichiisaikitsune
Summary: What is love, really? To Lee it's a leaf named Rocky, to Gai it's youthfulness, to Gaara love is only a word. [GaaLee]


**Title - **What is Love?  
**Author - **blackharu2  
**Rating - **PG  
**Pairing(s) - **GaaraXLee, smidgets of GaiXLee, some crack of LeeXLeaf  
**Summary - **What's love, really? To Lee, it's a leaf named Rocky, to Gai it's youthfulness, to Gaara it's simply a word.  
**A/N - **Fluff issues no.4528! Yay for us!  
**Inspiration - **A TV show where someone, or something, sai "Love is only a word"  
**Special Thanks - **Eh.. Iono.. My beta, if she ever sees this XD  
**Disclaimer - **I don't, okay? Quit asking, naggy! Now, let's sing the "Nag Song"  
**Warning - **None, really... -.-;;

**..:What is Love:..**

Lee remembered one day, a while back. He wasn't even a genin and had already made a connection with his soon-to-be sensei. He had walked up to Gai, a serious face intact and asked to speak with him. Of course, the jounin accepted and the two headed to a deserted clearing to talk in private. Gai sat down on the grass, patting the spot next to him, signaling Lee to sat down too. Once both were seated Lee refused to meet his elder's eyes. He stared blatantly at the grass, picking at the green weeds. After the silence grew too long, he pulled his legs to chest, happy to hear at least the clothes rustling.

"What is it, Lee?" Gai finally, apparently irritated with the silence.

"I just... I want to know..." Lee began, searching for the right words. He hugged his legs and rested his chin a the knees, lookingto the horizon. He was mystified by the blend of the grassy hills and the clear blue skies, yet even that did not shake his thoughts. He turned his head, ear touching his spandex-covered knee, and looked to Gai, with a serious expression, "You better not laugh!"

Inside the jounin was cooing at how much Lee resembled a kid. Still, he kept the joy inside and put his own serious face on, sticking out his hand, "I won't, promise." They shook and the deal, the younger a bit hesitant, and slowly the almost-genin unravelled himself from his cacoon.

"Okay. What.. What's.. What's love?" he eventually voiced, desperately avoiding the shinobi's eyes. He played absent-mindedly with a blade of grass, pulling at it and peeling the outer layers of it.

"Love? Well, love is the center of all things Youthful! It's how you feel toward someone! Whether they are your sibling, your friends, your pets, or your lover! You can't be a young, smart, wise, witty, energetic, loveable, helpful adult - like me - without love!" Gai shouted, shooting up and taking on a 'good-guy pose'. He turned back to the boy, raising an eyebrow, "What brought this on all of the sudden, anways?"

"Well..." The kid started, eyes still staring far before him, "I just.. Wanted to know... I don't get much love around here..."

"Hm..," clearly the 'loveable adult' was thinking, then smiled softly, "You only need one person, or animal's, love to go on! And you've got Rocky, right?"

Lee smiled. Yes, the taijutsu master was right, he only needed love from one person, or animal. And he had Rocky, his best friend Rocky. Of course, Rock ywasn't the average 'best friend'. Honestly, he wasn't even human. But that didn't matter for Lee loved him all the same. Through thick and thin, Rocky was always on his side. And whenever he told someone of his best friend and they who he, or she, was, he would smile broadly. "Rocky's my pet leaf!" He would tell them, enthusiasm pouring out of him.

Sadly though, Rocky only got him more snickers. Soon all of the kids at school knew of his pet leaf, and they all made fun of him. They'd point at him and laugh, saying an imaginary friend was better than a leaf. They would also shout how the name 'Rocky' was meant for a rock, not a leaf! But Lee paid them no mind, simply happy with his own friends. Still, he wished someone would be his friend, like Rocky, he really wished he could actually talked to someone who said something back.

"Yeah, I have Rocky. But the kids make fun of me..."

"Well, don't forget, you always have me," the older of the two replied, smiling like a father would to his son. He pulled the other into a tight hug and his grin grew larger as he noticed two arms wrap around his waist. Lee had his head buried into the spandex-covered chest of Gai.

"Thank you," he mumbled into the fabric, vibrations tickling the elder.

That memory would always stay, burned in his mind. He even wrote down the whole conversation when he got home, as to not forget what they both said. He was so happy since that, almost always smiling, laughing, or just being crazy. And all the pestering at jokes thrown his way, even the insults or laughs, didn't bug him anymore. He would simply brush them off, happy to have two people, or one person and a leaf, that loved him. He found that that was all that really mattered.

But of course, he didn't feel like that right now. No, not in the same exact place as that happy memory with someone else. He sat with a small smile, legs pulled to his chest, his arms wrapped themselves around the stick-like legs. His head found happiness in its place on the knees, eyes searching for something far in the distance.

The sun was setting, leaving a nice array of colors in the dim sky. Purple, orange, pink, some firey red, a little of left over blue, and a few others entwined with each other in the sky, tangled in a dance without the sun. But even then, the sun peered out, watching the many colors fly, happy to be with each other but not the sun. Still, the view was beautiful. The soft sunset meeting with the cold hardness of the real world of green.

The redhead beside sat in silence. Seeming to be waiting for a reason as to why he was out here. He was just randomly asked to come to this spot, being told by Lee that the other had something to say, or ask. He sat not much different than the boy beside him. Knees bent, stuck together, elbows on top, his hands creating a nest for his head. And as he watched the sky with mild interest, a smile hovered over his face, eyes shining with obvious happiness. Even though he prefered the night - where the stars were out and about, the moon glistening - he still loved to watch the sun leave the sky.

"Lee, what is it?" he asked, any malice erased from his voice. No sting or cold tones, just a simple, civil tone.

"Gaara.. I want to ask... What is love?" Lee questioned, thinking of his Gai-sensei and the leaf that was with him for the longest time - Rocky. He was still saddened by the thought of Rocky. He hadn't gotten over the disappearance of his best friend. Although he had a new best friend, one who liked him for him - oddly enough - he still missed the critter. He remembered stuffing the leaf in a pocket then all of the sudden, it was gone. The sigh that left his lips sounded heart-broken, like someone had just shattered the organ into a million pieces.

"Love is a word," the redhead replied, not even hesitating. He wasn't going to lie on his opinion after him and Lee had gone through so much. If the other was going to ask him a personal question, which this one seemed to be by the way Lee was acting, then he would give and honest answer. That was as simple as it could get. However, his heart jumped to his throat at the obvious pain and hurt in the "oh" Lee was barely able to voice.

"O-Okay," the taijutsu master started, gulping down the lump in his throat, "if that's what it really is to you..."

"Lee..." Gaara heaved a sigh, sometimes his friend couldbe way too emotional, "Love is a word. The word 'love' is what you hear all the time. I'm not saying it doesn't exist, just that the word isn't used lightly. But, if I were to talk about a love between people, a would simply say it's a feeling. A very strong feeling," he explained. He didn't bother to ponder on why he talked so much to Lee, yet not to anyone else. He figured it was a bond between them. He could talk to Lee about anything and talk as long as he liked. And the leaf-nin could do the same with him.

The ebony-haired shinobi let a smile overcome his face at the explanation. He was glad the sand-nin wasn't a complete icecube like some had said. Of course, he couldn't really be an icecube with how much feeling he shows to Lee, but it was fully evident.

"I.. Here," the Kazekage stated, pulling a rather large leaf out of his pocket. He handed it over to Lee, making sure not to hurt the plant. Sure, it was a peculiar present, however, it was still the thought that mattered. And by the look on his friend's face, it was a pretty good gift. He willed the light crimson cloud floating over his cheeks to leave, still they wouldn't leave. He smiled softly at the boy next to him, ready to explain himself on the weird gift.

"Does he, or she, have a name?" Lee asked, shifted the leaf delicately from hand to hand. The leaf reminded him of Rocky and if it didn't have a name he would name it after his forgotten friend. However, if it didn't have a name, he would simply make Rocky the leaf's middle name.

"He," Gaara stated, then blushed lightly, "His name is... Rocky," his head was bowed, the ears looked to be burning, "I know it's a stupid name, bu--"

"I love it!" Lee cut in, hugging the plant to death. He was oddly mystified by the fact that the Kazekage would name a leaf 'Rocky' but he figured it was why he named his leaf the same way. It was only because the name felt as thought it suited the leaf, nothing more. He was happy for his new friend, to have another buddy that would always be with him, for Gaara had to leave every time his visited.

The redhead looked completely stunned, but let a smile tug at his lips. He kept silent, just watching Lee talk to the leaf and becoming instant buddies with it. He wasn't sure himself why he name a _leaf_ 'Rocky'. However, the feeling sticked and somehow it just seemed right. He never believed in that sort of thing, but the gut feeling was not to be ignored. Also, he heard Lee once had a friend that was a leaf, or an imaginary fried that was a leaf, something like that, and it seemed like the perfect gift.

Gaara had even plucked the largest leaf from the prettiest tree to get it. He earned himself a lot of small cuts and very many questioning gazes from his villages, even some confrontations from his family. But he simply stated: "It's for my friend" and the let him be. He had thousands of leaves at home now, his debate over the best one lasted for hours. It was odd, acting so irrationally for a stupid gift to one guy, however, he wanted to be the best and he couldn't get anything better.

Seriously, it wasn't like they were dating or anything so he couldn't get the boy flowers or chocolates - which he knew the boy adored - and could only get him something else that was thoughtful. And then the story of the leaf was heard and he stuck with the plant. Lee liked plants. For Pete's sake, he wears _green_ **everyday**! He had to have figured out by now that green was Lee's favorite color and that plants were green!

"I better go," he finally voiced, standing from his spot on the grass. He sent a rare smile to Lee, or rather to the frown on Lee's face. He suddenly found himself forced back to the ground by arms. He landed painfully on his back, losing his breath or a few moments, holding on for dear life onto the thing on top of him. He looked down the person in his arms and felt his body freeze and his eyes grow wide. He was apparently glomped by Lee, the impact making both of them fall onto the grass.

"Thanks for the present," the leaf-nin stated, absent-mindedly, almost in a daze, pecking the redhead on the check. He smiled down at the boy after he did that too, just like it was the most common thing in the world. And even more surprising, he smiled back, sitting them both up. He stood up, Lee copying and they both stood comfortably close to each other. It was never an unusual thing for them, well the kiss might've been, so neither said a word as they carried on.

"Now there's someone to love you when I'm not around," Gaara stated almost inaudible, scaring himself. Sure, the thought had been on his mind, but never really did he listen to the nagging voice. And with Lee so close he was bound to hear it.

"Huh?" the other asked, clearly not hearing a word, which the redhead was thankful for.

"Nothing," he gave a shake of his head.

"If you say so," Lee said, smiling knowingly. He gingerly ran his fingers over the leaf in his hand, eyes shining. This leaf was his best friend, but always after Gaara. Oh, he heard alright, and he was all too thrilled he did.

**..:Owari:..**

**Sap! Yay! Go sap, we love you! Okay, sory, geez.. I'm on a GaaLee rampage, honestly! I've written 3 things, added on to more of others in three days! That's not normal, for me at least! Anyways, review, and I shall love you forever! Yay!**


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